Commander: Pakistani forces had no role in releasing Iranian border guards

TEHRAN (FNA)- Commander of the Iranian Border Guard Units General Hossein Zolfaqari underlined that the Pakistani security and military forces played no role in the freedom of the Iranian border guards who were abducted by Jeish al-Adl terrorist group in February and released on Friday.

“Although some actions were taken by the Pakistani border guards to find their Iranian colleagues, the Pakistani intelligence, military and police forces played no role in releasing the hostages,” Zolfaqari said on Sunday.

He said that the abductees were released due to the joint cooperation among the border guards, Sistan and Balouchestan province’s General-Governor office and a number of regional tribal leaders.

Zolfaqari also dismissed Pakistani officials’ claims that the kidnapped Iranian border guards were not kept in Pakistan, and said they were handed over to Iran from Pakistan.

The four Iranian border guards who had been handed over to the country’s officials in neighboring Pakistan on Friday returned home on Sunday morning two months after their abduction.

“The four border guards entered Iran a few hours ago after crossing the Afghanistan-Pakistan border region,” an informed source told FNA on Sunday.

The source pointed to the follow-ups and efforts of all concerned Iranian bodies and the pressures exerted on Jeish Al-Adl to release the abducted Iranian border guards, and said, “Consensus and cooperation of all the elderlies in the region rendered great help to this result.”

On Saturday, Governor-General of the bordering Sistan and Balouchestan province in Southeastern Iran confirmed that the four Iranian border guards who were released on Friday were handed over to the country’s officials in neighboring Pakistan and would soon return home.

Meantime, Ali Awsat Hashemi confirmed the death of one of the five border guards, Jamshid Danayee-Far, and said Iran is waiting for the transfer of his body.

The five Iranian border guards were abducted in Jakigour region of Iran’s Sistan and Balouchestan Province on February 6 and taken to Pakistan. One of them, Danayee-Far, was killed late last month.

After two months of abduction, the remaining four were released on Friday.

Jeish Al-Adl released the news of the freedom of the Iranian border guards on its website earlier on Friday.